Tour Review and Giveaway: The Colony by Kathleen Groger (A Rasper Novel, #1)

Book Blurb:

Trust no one.

Never go out in the dark.

Always have a weapon.

Sixteen-year-old Val lives by these three rules etched on her arm. Her rules and her gun are the only things standing between her and assimilation by hordes of human-looking aliens she calls Raspers.

By day, Val gathers supplies. By night, she hides and wishes she could go back in time…before her family died…before the annihilation…before the Raspers began stalking her and demanding she join their collective.

But when the Raspers attack in broad daylight, the truth becomes startlingly clear.

They’re evolving. A fellow survivor crashes into Val’s life. Adam’s full of charm and promises—like rumors of a safe haven—but there’s something wrong. He’s survived with no supplies, no weapons…no plans. Time is running out. With the formula for survival shifting around her, Val must decide how many rules she’s willing to break to escape the Colony.

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My Review:

4 Out Of 5 Stars

Genre: Dystopian, Aliens, Survival, Mystery--

Val has been on her own for the last 4 months since the Great Discovery turned the world upside down. She lives by her own rules of survival, avoiding the inhuman Raspers and trying her best to stay alive. When she encounters Adam, the only person she has seen in that time, she is instantly leery. Adam ends up saving her life, and Val has no choice but to give him a chance. But Adam has a secret, one that Val may not be able to forgive. Can the two of them stay alive long enough to find answers about the Great Discovery?

In case I have not made it clear in my many reviews of dystopian books, I am a huge fan of this genre. I think I must have high expectations when it comes to my end of the world adventures and recently I have been disappointed in what I have read. This story did not let me down, I am happy to say. It was unique enough that I did not feel like I had read this exact story before, and there was plenty of action to keep me engaged. I blew through the story in about a day because it was a fast read due to the writing style, the action was well done and the twists were not things that I could predict. I also appreciated the dose of reality the author threw in, with real life survival scenarios and near death events where not everyone makes it out alive and at times it can be gory and gruesome. Oh and the creepiness factor was appreciated, especially when it comes to the black slime stuff and the “hive”.

At times Val drove me insane. She reacts as if she is the boss at all times (and in every scenario), and sure she has been on her own doing ok for months, but still she is an inexperienced 16 year old girl. I do like that she had previous training on weapons from her SWAT team father, it made her survival more believable to me. But anyway, she had such an attitude and kinda sorta treated Adam awful that there were plenty of times that if I had been him I would have peaced out. She is called a “bitch” at one point, and if the shoe fits and all… Adam on the other hand was just so mellow, caring and intuitive at times, it was slightly unbelievable as a traumatized 16 year old boy. But whatever. Val was the main characters and had a very strong personality, that despite my issues with her attitude she was an interesting perspective.

I was glad the truth behind the Great Discovery was addressed in this book instead of just adding to the huge pile of questions the ending gave me. I like the direction the story took and I am just as curious as Val is as to why she is wanted. I can’t wait to read more because there has to be at least one more book to finish the saga this book began.

I received this title in return for my honest review.

Author Bio:

Kathleen wrote her first story in elementary school about a pegasus named Sir Lancelot. It had no plot or conflict, but it sparked a dream. After serving a fifteen-year sentence in retail management, the bulk in big box bookstores, she turned her love of reading into a full-time career writing dark and haunting characters and stories.

She lives by the mantra that a day is not complete without tea. Lots of tea. Kathleen lives in Ohio with her husband, two boys, and two attention-demanding dogs. When not writing or editing or revising, you can find her reading, cooking, spending time with her family, or photographing abandoned buildings.

You can find her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and her Website

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Tour provided by Xpresso Book Tours